$1 Million Worth Of Cell Phones Stolen In Centennial
Half Of 11,000 Phones Recovered In Tractor-Trailer In Florida
POSTED: 7:01 a.m. MDT May 27, 2003
UPDATED: 6:08 p.m. MDT May 27, 2003
LITTLETON, Colo. -- Thousands of Nokia cellular phones got really mobile over the weekend.
The 10,957 phones, worth almost $1 million, were stolen from a business in Centennial on Sunday morning and about half were recovered in Florida by Monday afternoon.
Investigators in both states are looking into the possibility that a national theft ring is responsible.
Francisco Perez, 37, and Honay Hernandez, 28, both of Tampa, Fla. were being held on $100,000 bond each for dealing in stolen
property, said Suwannee County Undersheriff Les Hall. Arapahoe County investigators said the two may also face Colorado charges.
The phones, worth $983,000 wholesale, disappeared overnight Saturday from an Advantage Wireless warehouse in Centennial.
"The planning involved in this, they were very professional in the way they did it," said Arapahoe County Bureau Chief Bob Lauderdale.
Lauderdale said that the store manager went to work Sunday to investigate problems with the phone lines. When he arrived, he found the door pried open, the phone lines cut and the security system disabled.
"All four suspects during the commission of the burglary were wearing gloves and masks," said Lauderdale.
But the thieves failed to discover a backup security camera which "recorded four individuals as they went about the process of stealing a large number of cell phones," Lauderdale said.
Investigators said the suspects were in the store for at least two hours methodically loading some 25 pallets of cell phones into a truck.
According the surveillance tape, the burglary started at about 11:20 p.m. Saturday.
The suspects hit the road about 1:30 a.m. and by 2:30 p.m. Monday, just 36 hours later, the tractor-trailer had been pulled over by an officer with the Florida Department of Agriculture.
"She stopped a truck that appeared not to have the appropriate tax stamps on it," Lauderdale said.
The driver and the passenger were arrested. Their names have not been released.
Investigators in Suwannee County, Fla., and in Arapahoe County were able to match serial numbers on the recovered telephones to those reported stolen. Only half of the stolen merchandise was found in the truck.
A Florida task force said a gang of suspects from South Florida is known to travel throughout the United States committing large burglaries like this one. In each case, the stolen property is brought to Florida and shipped out of the country.
Florida's Tactical Operation Multi-Agency Cargo Anti-Theft Task
Force was investigating whether the suspects have ties to this gang.
Investigators in both states are looking into the possibility that a national theft ring is responsible.
Francisco Perez, 37, and Honay Hernandez, 28, both of Tampa, Fla. were being held on $100,000 bond each for dealing in stolen
property, said Suwannee County Undersheriff Les Hall. Arapahoe County investigators said the two may also face Colorado charges.
The phones, worth $983,000 wholesale, disappeared overnight Saturday from an Advantage Wireless warehouse in Centennial.
"The planning involved in this, they were very professional in the way they did it," said Arapahoe County Bureau Chief Bob Lauderdale.
Lauderdale said that the store manager went to work Sunday to investigate problems with the phone lines. When he arrived, he found the door pried open, the phone lines cut and the security system disabled.
"All four suspects during the commission of the burglary were wearing gloves and masks," said Lauderdale.
But the thieves failed to discover a backup security camera which "recorded four individuals as they went about the process of stealing a large number of cell phones," Lauderdale said.
Investigators said the suspects were in the store for at least two hours methodically loading some 25 pallets of cell phones into a truck.
According the surveillance tape, the burglary started at about 11:20 p.m. Saturday.
The suspects hit the road about 1:30 a.m. and by 2:30 p.m. Monday, just 36 hours later, the tractor-trailer had been pulled over by an officer with the Florida Department of Agriculture.
"She stopped a truck that appeared not to have the appropriate tax stamps on it," Lauderdale said.
The driver and the passenger were arrested. Their names have not been released.
Investigators in Suwannee County, Fla., and in Arapahoe County were able to match serial numbers on the recovered telephones to those reported stolen. Only half of the stolen merchandise was found in the truck.
A Florida task force said a gang of suspects from South Florida is known to travel throughout the United States committing large burglaries like this one. In each case, the stolen property is brought to Florida and shipped out of the country.
Florida's Tactical Operation Multi-Agency Cargo Anti-Theft Task
Force was investigating whether the suspects have ties to this gang.
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